We should not fear car tracking project

The introduction of pan-European tracking of every car journey is a sugar-coated pill; any concerns about increasing levels of surveillance will be brushed aside by a technology that promises to be as seductive as our mobile phones (Follow that car: the box that will let Big Brother track drivers anywhere in Europe, 31 March). The fact that our handsets happen to double as a highly effective means of tracking our movements does not feel like a high price to pay in return for the benefits, and the Co-operative Vehicle Infrastructure Systems project will be no different.

Everyone agrees that Britain needs a safe, reliable and high-quality transport system, and a technology that will reduce emissions, beat congestion and ultimately result in cars that drive themselves will feel no more an invasion of our privacy than the ability to send a text.Andrew DavisEnvironmental Transport Association

The advent of technology that will make it possible to monitor the location, speed and direction of travel of a car need not be all bad news. It could allow the government to abolish road tax and replace it by a charge dependent on the time a car was over the speed limit and the excess speed. Observation of driving habits on our motorways suggests this would be a net earner for the exchequer.Professor Keith BarnhamKingston upon Thames, Surrey